My goal was to increase the flexibility of the fitness system, especially in regards to mutations. It seems weird to me that a normal human, a freakishly huge mutant, and a mutant with butterfly wings can all fit perfectly inside the same XL Survivor Suit.
How the fitness system would work:
Each type of apparel would have a max_fitness number (100 for all current non-oversized clothes). Each individual piece of clothing in a game would have a fitness_level. Clothes found in the world would generate with a fitness_level between 0 and the max_fitness of that item. All custom made clothing would have a fitness_level equal to its max_fitness. Types of clothing would have modifiers to their fitness_level based on a character’s traits or mutations. A simple example would be gendered clothing having reduced fitness_level if your character is the wrong gender.
Each body part would have a fitness_requirement property (let’s say 75 for a normal human). A piece of apparel’s fitness would be determined by comparing the apparel’s fitness_level to your body’s fitness_requirement. If fitness_requirement - fitness_level is <= 0 (clothing with 75-100 fitness_level for a normal human) it fits perfectly, If it’s between 1 and 50 (25-74 fitness_level for a normal human) it fits normally, between 51 and 75 (0-25 fitness_level) it fits poorly and would add encumbrance, any higher and it would be unwearable.
How mutations would work:
Deforming mutations would increase the fitness_requirements of the effected body parts, with especially deforming mutations making normal clothes unusable. One-size-fits-all clothing such as wraps and holsters would have a max fitness high enough to fit over even the most deformed body parts. However, I would not include clothing specifically made for mutants, such as tentacle sleeves and XL clothing, in the one-size-fits-all category.
I would also divide deforming mutations into two main categories: oversized (huge, hooves, muzzles), and extra-limbs(wings, tails, horns).
I have two different ideas for how to manage oversized mutations. The first is to modify how XL clothing works. XL clothing would have a max_fitness of 0, making them simply to large for a normal human to wear, but they would give fitness_level bonuses if your character has an oversized mutation. The second idea is to add an “Enlarge” modification for apparel. This would cost extra material and increase encumbrance, but add a fitness_level bonus for oversized mutations.
For extra-limbs mutations I would add a “cut holes” modification for apparel. This would reduce coverage, and possible warmth, of a piece of clothing. In exchange, it would add the ALLOWS_NATURAL_ATTACKS flag and increase the fitness for extra-limbs mutations.